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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Transforming Tuesdays: Giving Back!

Sometimes going through life can become so mundane and
routine. Often times we forget our
reasons of being here. We can become so
consumed with what we’re doing or our own personal successes that we forget
what really matters. Our goal of living
in eternity with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ should always be the meaning
to life here on earth. No matter how
crazy this world gets, we have to always keep our eyes on the prize! Also, we have to find ways to give back to others just as Christ has done for us.

When we get to heaven we can’t take any of these things that
we have with us. We can’t even take a
Bible with us!! This is because Heaven will supply all of our needs and wants,
mainly because that is our home. The
thought of it is just beautiful, kind of like a vacation that you never have to
leave. The big question is trying to
figure out how to get there. One of the
big things that you have to realize in order to get into heaven is
understanding why Jesus died on the cross.
He did all of that to forgive us of all our sins. He was crucified so many years ago for sins
that he knew that you and I would commit in 2013. He is truly amazing!

In Matthew we are introduced to the story of the servant who
was shown mercy when he could not pay his debt.
The master was initially going to sell him and his family into slavery
until the servant begged for mercy and the master changed his mind. The master eventually canceled the man’s debt
and the servant was put into the same situation as his original master. The servant was owed money by someone who was
just like him, and instead of showing the same compassion that he was shown, he
had the other servant thrown into jail.
I found this odd considering he was just shown mercy, but then it made
me think of my own personal experiences.
How many times do we refuse to show the same compassion that we are
offered? How many times do we think of
ourselves before we think of others?

This story reminded me of my day yesterday. When I woke up for school I was so exhausted
that I suddenly got worried. Although I
am not one who gets a lot of sleep, I can usually survive on maybe 4-5 hours of
sleep a night. This past week I have
been having the worst sleepless nights where it feels like when I close my eyes
I feel like I have to get up. Well I
contemplated on whether or not I was going to go to school or not, but then I
remembered that I had promised to participate in a college fair for high school
students. My initial thinking was that
other people were going to be there so I didn’t have to go. As it turned out, I had an amazing time
connecting with the students in their search for higher education. I was able to laugh, encourage, and inspire,
and I grew less tired. On my way home at
around 6:30pm I was able to reflect on how important it was for me to be there
and give back. What if everyone who has
inspired, helped, or encouraged me were too tired to meet me??? That thought alone should encourage you
enough to do better in your life.

We all need each other in life especially in our daily walk
with Christ. The start of 2013 opened my
eyes to allow me to realize that I have 6 other people who are just like me and
who are striving to be better (Jael, Brittney, Ron, Christian, Hannah, and
Steven just to name a few) and who give back in ways unimaginable. The idea of giving back doesn’t have to be
big or extravagant, it could possibly be by listening or even praying for
someone. One of the biggest forms of
giving back is by using your negative past experiences and making them positive
so that other people can grow from them.
The servant in Matthew was in a predicament to give back the same mercy
that he was shown and he failed to do so.
The same notion works for forgiveness!
You are supposed to forgive 77x7, which is a huge number. Just as Jesus forgave us of our sins we
should do the same. It’s not hard and
that is where some of your blessings come from.

Don’t miss out on your blessings that come from being a
blessing to others. Learn to smile more,
laugh harder, encourage as much as breathe, inspire before you hinder, when you
stumble get back up, and when you get back up bring 2 other people up with you. Life is temporary so while you’re here we
should all try to be the best that we can be while keeping God at the
forefront.

Look how this lady found a way to give back although her past seemed as if it were in turmoil. This is how you can turn a MESS into A MESSage.